Rite Aid, Intesource renew e-sourcing partnership

By Alaric DeArment

PHOENIX — Rite Aid is renewing its contract with e-sourcing firm Intesource, the Phoenix-based e-sourcing company said Tuesday.

Rite Aid's contract with Intesource dates back to 2009, and the Camp Hill, Pa.-based chain has used it to tackle complex and strategic categories, ranging from print advertising to snow plowing services. E-sourcing refers to using an online portal to attract bids from suppliers of products and services.

"E-sourcing needs to be a primary driver of growth and profitability for retailers," Intesource VP sales Len Kaplan said. "Many organizations shy away from sourcing complex categories because they don't have the internal resources and necessary experience to succeed. Rite Aid, on the other hand, uses our services to consistently tackle complex categories head-on and has seen immense value and savings as a result."

Intesource said Rite Aid relies "heavily" on it as an extension of its own e-sourcing team, and that its services allowed Rite Aid to invest its internal resources on sourcing more categories and securing additional services.